


A Holiday Miracle

by L122ytorch



Category: DCU, Smallville
Genre: Christmas, First Dates, M/M, New Year's Eve
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-26
Updated: 2018-12-26
Packaged: 2019-09-27 18:19:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,798
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17166941
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/L122ytorch/pseuds/L122ytorch
Summary: Clark is struggling to not only find his place in the world, but also with how best to save it. He needs a break, and what better time for a respite than the holidays? A whim carries him to Lex's balcony, and he decides to show his greatest enemy a different side of himself.





	A Holiday Miracle

Clark loved Christmas, but the holiday just wasn't the same after his father had died. Thinking back on past Christmases was a double edged sword. On one hand, it filled Clark with the warmth and love that he had so fondly cherished growing up; on the other hand, it reminded him just how much his life had changed, and it sent a familiar stab of searing loss through his chest. No one could replace Jonathan Kent.

His dad never got to see him become Superman. He would never be sitting at the front of row of his future wedding. He would never get to hold his future grandchildren...if Clark would have any. But despite these heart wrenching certainties, Clark lay in bed at night and mentally thumbed through his past, letting the warmth of those Norman Rockwell-esque times fill his heart, knowing full well the empty coldness that would come rushing in the second he'd open his eyes to his barren apartment. 

Long gone were the days of blustery Smallville winters...Main Street strung with twinkling lights, hot cocoa's at the Talon with Lana, Pete, and Chloe. There was no more picking out a tree at the Smallville stockyard. No more holiday music flooding the idyllic yellow farmhouse while his mother baked gingerbread cookies and his father watched football. 

Martha sold the farmhouse when she took up a seat in the Senate. Jonathan's grave sat atop a hill in the Metropolis Cemetery with a brilliant red poinsettia at its head, courtesy of Clark. Chloe worked at the Inquisitor, Clark hadn't talked to or seen Pete since he moved away their sophomore year of high school, and Lana had escaped Lex's sphere of influence and established her own life in Metropolis after a considerable stint in Asia.

And what had time succeeded in doing to Clark? He had finished college at Met U, joined the staff at the Daily Planet, had somehow managed to become Lex's biggest adversary as Superman, and most recently...broke up with Lois and quit his job at the Planet. 

"Journalism was dead," they said. The internet had taken over...social media had taken over...and a cheeto dusted Oompa Loompa was sitting in the Oval Office of the White House. 

Lex was so enraged that the orange temper-tantrum prone capitalist crony had taken office...that he swore to run in the 2020 election. 

Luthor's popularity was gaining, and unlike the current president, he vowed to sever his ties with the billion dollar, global giant, Luthorcorp when he was elected...as well as provide his tax returns and any other records that were asked of him. 

Lex was certainly just as shady as the current head of the nation, but he was ten thousand times smarter. Any illicit dealings he had conducted, he did so with the utmost discretion, with only the most trustworthy criminals, and dealt whatever monetary assets were needed strictly under the table. There were no records that could incriminate Lex...Clark knew this to be true...because he'd already looked. 

Clark was 29 now, and Lex was 35. It was hard to believe that Smallville High's ten year reunion had just taken place. Time was a paradox as Clark felt that it was both flying by, and going painfully slow. 

His life wasn't shaping up to what he thought it would be. Some disappointment, some hollowness, lodged itself so deeply in his chest that he wondered if he'd ever find anything to fill it. 

No longer tied down to writing at the Planet, no longer chained to a desk, Clark was constantly running laps around the world saving people as Superman. But no matter how many people he pulled out of burning buildings, no matter how many criminals he put away, he felt the overwhelming dread that there was an endless supply of people to save, catastrophe's to avert, and disasters just waiting to come down the pipeline. It was a depression that he knew many law enforcement officers experienced...wondering if they really made a difference in the grand scheme of things...getting bogged down by all of the chaos and darkness and crime that festered in the world. 

Clark needed a break from being Superman, but how could he take one in good conscience? Every time he heard someone cry out his name and he chose not to respond...was another life that could be in peril...did that make him responsible if that person died?

Massive moral dilemmas, that's what his life boiled down to. 

There were raging fires in California, Tsunami's in Asia... he raced around like a madman, hearing so many screams and cries, seeing so many unmoving bodies and unblinking eyes, that all of it haunted him at night. He could see their faces frozen in death when he closed his eyes, he could hear their pleas for help echoing in his mind in the silence of his apartment. 

Lois knew his secret, knew his identity, but their breakup made talking to her about personal issues awkward. Plus, it's not like she could relate...no one could. Superman was an island, and there wasn't a soul on the planet who could truly empathize with him. Knowing that made things even worse. He felt truly alone. 

He would talk to Bruce and feel a bit better for a little while, but even the other members of the Justice League were at least from this planet. They each struggled with their own hardships, but none of them had Clark's abilities. Hell, Clark wasn't even humanity's favorite hero... he wasn't nearly as dark and mysterious as Bruce... he wasn't as beautiful and enchanting as Diana... he wasn't funny and adorable like Barry or technologically enhanced like Ray.

The Inquisitor wrote a piece about Superman recently, saying that he had, "Too Many Advantages." He was gifted with an assorted "bouquet" of superpowers and therefore, he had no reason to complain or cause to suffer. But that couldn't be further from the truth. He suffered a lot. Apparently, one person quoted in the article said that it was, "lame" that he had any weaknesses at all. The public had seen Superman bleed...they knew it could be done, they just didn't know how. The article tried to soothe the comment over by pointing out that everyone has an Achilles heel. Still...he was painted in an...unsavory light. And after all he had done for humanity...

Clark was lost. He needed a new career path, he needed a new focus, he needed to lift the guilt he felt at having to hear the whole world suffer and try to choose who should receive his help. Perhaps lead earplugs would be something he could look into. 

What wasn't helping his generally depressed disposition was the holiday season. It was his first Christmas without Lois in five years. He had made a trip to see Martha in Washington, but after they exchanged presents and had dinner, he flew back to Metropolis. 

His apartment was meager, built on a journalists salary in 2018. Rent was always going up and pay was always going down. Many of his friends, in their late twenties and early thirties, had to move back home just to survive. It was a rough winter for a lot of people. 

He spent Christmas morning with a mug of coffee in his hand, watching the classic Christmas movies that he used to watch with his Dad. He took a nap, he heated a frozen lasagna for dinner, he drank a whole bottle of wine (even though alcohol doesn't affect him) and he stared out his window. 

If he wanted, he could live like a king, he could be richer than the Luthors, he could be the richest man in the world, and the most famous. But he cherished his anonymity as Clark Kent, even though it was being threatened daily by the phones in everyone's pockets. 

After taking in the sight of the shimmering city dusted in snow, he decided to take a flight, even if it was just to get out of his apartment. 

Clark raced into his suit and out into the frigid December night. The people down below looked like ants and the cars looked like toys. Most would assume that having his powers and being in his position would make one feel unstoppable, like a god among men. The truth was, it made Clark feel helpless. The world was massive and endless in its problems. He wanted to save everyone, to protect the planet from outside threats, but what if he was unable? What if he failed? 

The responsibility was suffocating. 

He tried to focus on something as he flew, anything to get his mind out of this rut. What his ears settled on was a familiar heartbeat, one he had known since he was fifteen. He gravitated towards it, gliding effortlessly through the crisp air, until he arrived at a penthouse balcony. 

Lex was there, in a large black coat, sitting at a table with a steaming hot drink. His features changed drastically when his eyes spotted Superman. You could see his grip tighten around the mug, his jaw clench, his eyes go cold. 

"Superman..." he spat, "to what do I owe this visit."

Superman hovered, suspended, just outside the balcony. He wasn't quite sure how to answer since he hadn't set out to visit Lex, but rather followed his whims here. 

"Nothing in particular," is what he went with. 

Lex's eyes narrowed suspiciously. 

"So I'm supposed to believe that you simply enjoy spending time with me?" Lex said sarcastically. Rather than be off-put as Lex intended, the alien cracked a small smile. 

Clark remembered all of the time he had spent with Lex in Smallville. How they had once played pool, gone for joy rides in Porsches, decorated the mansion for Christmas, went to movies...those were good times. Good times before Lex began to insist on knowing Clark's secrets, and when he didn't get them, began to resent him for it. Resentment grew to distrust, distrust to anger, anger to hatred. Lex not only hated Superman, he hated Clark Kent, and that realization made the smile drop right off Superman's face. 

"I think that you can be tolerable at times Luthor." 

"Don't you have something better to do than harass me on this auspicious Christmas evening?" 

"Actually, I don't," he flew upwards, over the balcony railing, and landed softly on the rooftop terrace. "And I wasn't aware that I was harassing...I thought you might like some company." 

"Ahh so the alien takes pity on the lonely human during the holidays, is that what you think?" Lex leaned forward, hatred dripping from his words.

"No...I would never pity you Lex. I think you could be anywhere in the world you wanted right now, with whoever you wanted. I think that just like me...well...it's hard to find people to relate to. Sometimes it's so much extra work being out in the world that it's easier just to be alone."

The whole statement caught Lex off guard. The fact that the alien had used his first name...the fact that the alien was trying to relate to him on a personal level. This was a being he had only ever been at odds with. A creature he had only exchanged witty quips and heated remarks with. And he was being nice to him? Superman must have some sort of endgame he was playing at. 

"Bullshit," Lex said into his spiked cocoa as he brought it to his lips. "You're beloved by the entire world and you're lonely? I'm not sure why you're trying to relate to the bald billionaire freak that is Lex Luthor, but I don't buy whatever this is." 

Superman's features twisted in confusion and he walked closer, towards the table Lex sat at. 

"I'm going to ignore the creepy way that you just referred to yourself in third person and simply ask...may I sit?" 

Lex couldn't believe Superman's gaul, but the proceedings were at least intriguing. 

"Why not?" he motioned to the chair at the head of the table, to his right, and the alien pulled up a chair. 

"Everyone around me is always putting on a show," Superman offered, his hands folded on the icy tabletop, unaffected by the cold. "People fawn over...me...Superman. Criminals lie to me. Politicians try to work me. All the average citizen wants with me is a selfie. It's quick and shallow interactions with the other person's goals always at the forefront."

"People thank you for saving their life," Lex offered. 

"Yes they do," Superman agreed. "But no one talks to me like a normal person."

"You're not a person...you're an alien...a freak," Lex took another swig. 

The words should have stung, but they didn't because Clark had said those things to himself his whole life. Lex waited Superman's anger like a kid awaiting a new lollipop, but he didn't get it.

"I know," the two words came out in a whisper, his eyes lingered on Lex's neck but were actually looking somewhere far away. His breath came out in little puffs of steam and the admission made something in Lex's chest tighten. 

"So it's your goal to get me to pity you?" Lex said incredulously. 

"No," Superman's steely blue eyes snapped up to meet Luthors gaze. "No...I've been very fortunate, I've had an excellent life."

"How lovely," the words came out hollow and harsh just as intended. "Do tell me why you're here saying all of this to me." 

Superman's face fell, he swallowed, his knuckles tightening. "I don't know, I thought you might be able to relate to the notion of...of having power and being isolated because of it. But maybe I was wrong. You seem to be doing just fine and show no interest in getting to know me." 

If Lex didn't know any better, it sounded almost as if the alien was saddened by this revelation. 

"What were you thinking? That we could go from beat down, drag out battles to braiding each other's hair and weaving friendship bracelets?" 

Lex said it with a straight face but the statement lit up Superman's face like a Christmas tree. 

"I've always loved your sense of humor Lex, but you seem to be a bit challenged in the hair department."

The billionaire cocked his head, alarmed that Superman was still addressing him as 'Lex' instead of just 'Luthor,' and acting like he knew Lex at all. 

Clark...Superman...quickly realized his mistake and cleared his throat. He supposed that lost in the haze of his own loneliness and misdirection some part of him wished he could gain back that long lost friendship with Lex. But it wasn't possible...it just wasn't. Lex had gone down a dark road, a path the likes of which Superman fought daily. He felt naive and stupid, but at the same time, relieved to be back in Lex's company. 

There was a familiarity to Superman, a nagging but gagged voice trying to whisper something in the back of Lex's mind. He had devoted so much time and money and energy into researching alien threats and how to neutralize them, he had spent so much time fighting Superman, that the thought of getting to know the thing never crossed his mind. Lex had done as much research on the alien as possible, but ultimately met a thousand dead ends. Maybe...if he let Superman in a little...he could learn more about the Kryptonian. At least that's what he told himself to quash the rising alarm at the enjoyment he was experiencing with his unexpected company.

"I know that I don't know you," Superman tried to recover, "and we're often at odds, but there is something I would like to show you."

"What is it?" 

"A Christmas gift. A surprise. But it would require an extremely warm jacket and earmuffs and gloves and boots and...trust."

"Why the hell should I trust you? You could kill me in an instant."

"I could, but if that was my intention, don't you think I would have done it already?"

"Valid point. But why do you care about giving me a gift when all I give you is headaches and fights?" 

"Honestly," Superman paused, "I don't even know myself. But it is Christmas, and it's something I do every year, and being the scientist you are...I don't know...I thought you might enjoy it." 

"But this will require me flying with you?" 

"Yes." 

Lex seemed visibly torn by this. His curiosity was overwhelming, screaming at him that he had to do whatever this was with Superman in order to begin to edge his way into the alien's life and learn more about him. On the other hand, it would mean being at Superman's mercy. If he wanted, Superman could take him high up in the sky, drop him, catch him just before the ground, and do that on an endless loop until Lex swore to give up his seedy life of crime. Although his mind ran rampant with a thousand catastrophic possibilities, he knew that Superman was not the torturing type. 

After a few minutes of deliberation, Lex downed the rest of his cocoa and stood. "I'll go get dressed."

Something like hope grew in Superman's chest and he felt a giddiness that he hadn't experienced in the longest time. Trying to maintain his stoic and imposing disposition, he kept the smile from reaching his face. 

After about ten minutes had gone by, Lex reappeared on the balcony. Superman stood and took in what Lex was wearing.

"You'll need a hat," Superman said as soon as he saw the other man.

"I don't do hats."

He sighed in exasperation, it'll be really really really cold and I don't want you to get sick Lex. Please, just this once, wear a hat."

Lex folded his arms in displeasure. "Well, I would since you insist, but I don't own one."

Superman couldn't help but smile at this, "I can fix that," and he disappeared. Less than a minute later, he reappeared, a little too close in front of Lex, who took a surprised step back. Superman closed the distance and had the balls to actually reach out and put earmuffs on Lex and then pull a warm knit hat onto his head. The gesture was far too intimate.

A flush of embarrassment swept over Lex and he considered calling the whole thing off, but he was so damn curious about what Superman wanted to show him that required nuclear winter, apocalyptic level clothing, to go see. The height difference between them also pissed Lex off. His eyes were at Superman's chin level, and he wanted to slap that smug smile right off the alien's face. 

"Ready?" Superman asked, his eyes locking with Lex's and sending some unknown tingly feeling slinking up Lex's spine. 

"Ready, but how exactly is this going to work?" 

"I'll hold you like this," Superman's massive steel arms closed around Lex. "And you can wrap both your legs around my one leg. I'll keep your head beneath my chin, protected from the cold, and I'll fly on my back so you won't be upside down, and we'll be there in ten minutes. If there's any problem, just let me know and I can stop, or we can return back here whenever..."

"I'll be fine, let's go." 

And with that, they were gently hovering off the solidity of the balcony into uncertainty. Superman was going slowly so as not to frighten Lex. Still, Luthor's hands tightened around him. 

"I know you hate heights Lex, but you'll be completely safe the entire time, I promise. And it's really cold, so you should probably close your eyes anyway." 

How the hell did he know that he was afraid of heights? Lex told very few people about his fears when he was younger and stupid...only people he was very close to...

The thought would have to be shelved as they steadily rose higher and moved faster. 

The first few minutes felt like they were dragging on and on...the pair was above the cloud cover and it was absolutely freezing as they flew (at what Lex suspected) was higher than the altitude that planes cruised at. Then he focused on Superman's heartbeat, on the warmth of his chest, on the beating of Superman's jugular pulsing beneath his ear, on the solid body pressed against his and the massive arms that held him in place, and time went by faster.

The air stung his eyes if he opened them, so he kept them shut tight, his face buried in the crook of Superman's neck. Finally, the alien began to slow and descend and then pivot them to stand on their feet. Lex opened his eyes. 

Snow engulfed the surrounding area and the sky rose like a gaping black maw all around them. Stars glittered like diamonds against the black backdrop of night and the sight was breathtaking. 

"Antarctica?" Lex ventured. He had been before. 

"Yes." 

"Beautiful." 

"Very." 

Lex looked over at Superman whose neck was craned, head tilted back, eyes devouring the sight before them. He must have felt the glare, because he turned to look at Lex and Lex looked away quickly. 

"With your superior vision..." Lex ventured, "how far out into space can you see?"

Worried that Superman would grow defensive at an invasive question about his abilities, Lex was pleasantly surprised when the alien only smiled and answered him. 

I can see Jupiter pretty clearly, Saturn starts to get a bit fuzzy. But I have to be outside of Earth's atmosphere."

"One point zero two billion miles," Lex mused, "impressive." 

"Is your curiosity ever satiated Lex?" Superman asked honestly.

"No. Never. So...we came to Antarctica to see the stars?" 

"No, we came to Antarctica to see this," Clark pointed at the sky and Lex could make out the faintest hint of green ribboning across the sky. 

"The Aurora Australis," Lex simply stated. "Wouldn't it have been closer to see the Aurora Borealis in Alaska?" 

"Not tonight...tonight this is brighter...just wait for it."

After a few moments of breathing into the frigid expanse of darkness, Lex watched as the green grew in strength and danced along the sky. It was a strikingly vibrant lime green hue that grew to enormous length and above it, a watermelon pink followed. 

Lex was so taken with the view that he didn't notice for a long time that Superman had been watching him with a grand smile on his face. 

Luthor looked at Superman and was taken aback by the brilliant blue eyes and striking features that peered back at him. He looked so...human...the only thing giving him away as being anything less, was the fact that he was too perfect. Too symmetrical. Too jaw-dropping in his beauty. He exuded strength and radiated heat. He had played into Lex's insatiable curiosity and absolute love of science. How could this stranger, this alien, know him well enough to give him perhaps the best Christmas gift he'd ever been given?

It angered him. 

He shouldn't feel kinship to this creature, he shouldn't feel gratitude or warmth or anything at all towards this man...but it rose in his gut and bloomed in his chest. Some bizarre fascination or affinity had seeded itself between Lex's ribs and pressed into the space where his heart used to be. He was standing so close to Superman, close enough to feel the alien's breath skate across his cheek. They were standing too close to be strangers, yet not close enough for Lex. What did that mean? 

"I'm glad that I could give you this gift Lex," Superman whispered, as if not to disrupt the sanctity of the scene around them. "Merry Christmas."

They were familiar words, trite to the embittered Lex Luthor, but spoken from Superman's lips they felt warm and sincere. He saw Superman's eyes sweep over his face and linger at his lips. He watched the other man swallow and then awkwardly, nervously, turn his face away and blush...hard. It shouldn't be endearing for a 29 year old to blush, but it was, which only further pissed off Lex. 

He tried desperately to hang on to the thread of hatred he had for Superman. He tried to maintain that this being was an alien, a threat, a thing that had brought death and destruction to Earth like a magnet for the malevolent unknown. But the thread was tenuous, it was groaning beneath the weight of seeing Superman act so...human. 

Lex turned and observed the lights once more. 

After several minutes of silence, Lex looked over at Clark who was still reverently taking in the view. "I would think that this hue of green would be your least favorite color."

The fleshy tone of pink drained right out of Superman's face as his alarmed eyes looked at Lex. He knew that Lex knew about Kryptonite, but hearing him say it...was...disarming. As soon as Lex saw Superman's expression, he regretted making the comment. 

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to ruin the moment," Lex uttered, shocked that an apology has passed his lips. 

Clark shook his head and cleared his throat, "no, it's okay. You're right, it's the same color."

Great, he had just ruined the Aurora Australis for Superman. Way to go Lex. 

"Is there any Kryptonite that's pink like that," Lex nodded towards the other color, trying to change the subject, and as soon as the words left his mouth, Superman laughed. Actually, it was more of a giggle. 

"Yes, there is," he admitted, noticing how Lex practically salivated at this knowledge. 

"And...does it affect you?" 

"I'd bet you like to know, wouldn't you?" 

"Well, yes, just for scientific purposes." 

"Riiiiiiiiighhhhhhhhttttt," Superman strung the word out as long as possible. 

Lex smiled, "I suppose you're not going to tell me?" 

"No," Superman chuckled, "maybe you'll find out one day, although I certainly hope not." 

That remark only piqued Lex's interest further. Superman made it sound like the effect was negative, but not so bad, he was giggling like a school girl after-all. Perhaps it did something embarrassing to the alien.

His thoughts on the matter were disrupted with, "We should head back to Metropolis." 

"We can't stay longer?" Lex hated how he sounded to his own ears...like a schoolboy begging for five more minutes of playing time outside. 

"No. I can't be dropping off a frozen Lexcicle to his balcony or Mercy will have my head." 

"Good point." 

Lex turned towards Superman and hung onto him once more, but it felt different this time. He could feel the dying chuckle still radiating through Superman's chest, he felt soothed by the heartbeat and instantly warmed by the alien heat. To his surprise, Lex realized that he fit nicely with Superman's body.

The flight felt much faster this time, too fast, and Lex was stunned by the disappointment he felt at landing on his balcony. As soon as his feet touched solid ground, he took off the hat and ear muffs and placed them on the table. There was a tension between he and Superman that he couldn't quite put his finger on. 

Lex stepped back into Superman's sphere of space and looked at him intently. "Thank you for that Superman, it was beautiful." 

Superman nodded, taking a deep breath that staggered when Lex's hand reached out and up and a thumb ran along his chiseled cheek bone. His hand trailed along the alien face, marveling at the smooth skin and shocked expression, and his thumb brushed the edge of Superman's lip. His gray eyes looked at those lips that seemed so familiar somehow, and he traced them with his thumb. 

Shocked, Superman's mouth parted, and the pad of Lex's thumb barely touched the wet inside of his bottom lip. Luthor was deeply satisfied that he could elicit such a reaction from the typically - arms crossed, deep voice, barrel chested, stoic - superhero. But that shock had morphed into another expression, one of...lust. 

That lust arranged Superman's features in such a way that Lex had never before witnessed, and he was sure that such an expression could melt even the sun. He felt drawn to kiss the creature that he hated most, and that idea sent his soul recoiling in fear, and his hand returning to his side. He didn't let his alarm show as he simply turned his back to Superman and walked towards the sliding glass door leading into his lush penthouse. 

"Goodnight Superman," he slid the door open, stepped inside, and disappeared.


End file.
